Kyochon
Over the long weekend, we made an impromptu trip to Kyochon in Cerritos, which is the closest one to San Diego. I know I previously posted about Kyochon, but since we tried more items this time and went to a different location, I thought an updated post would be nice.
Wings were on our mind over the weekend and the only wings we could think of having were Kyochon wings.
I know it sounds crazy that we drove so far for wings. We actually did some other eats along the way, so it wasn’t a completely crazy idea.
Kyochon is a famous chain that sells korean fried chicken. The wings are extremely crispy because they are fried twice, which eliminates the fat chunks attached to the skin.
Not only are the wings extremely crispy, but the marinated sauce has a great flavor. Their signature flavor is the soy garlic wings. The smell is strong enough that when we left the wings in the car, we could smell them even as we approached the car.
The one in Cerritos is actually located in the Cerritos mall food court. I thought it was an odd spot and was a little apprehensive that the quality wouldn’t be as good. When we approached, there were wings and chicken tenders available for sampling. Considering the wings cost almost a dollar a piece, giving a whole wing as a sample was pretty generous.
There were no plates even though we chose to dine in at the mall. Instead, we were given open little boxes, making picture taking a little hard.
We ordered the soy garlic signature wings again.
They were as good as we remembered. Thin, translucent crispy, with a strong garlic soy flavor.
We also tried the honey wings. These wings were pretty good and the honey flavor was not too sweet. They also appeared to be a little bigger than the soy garlic wings. I didn’t like the flavor as much as the soy garlic though and since these are also slightly more expensive, I prefer the soy garlic wings.
BF really wanted the chicken tenders. Interestingly, the chicken tenders are studded with little crispy rice, giving the chicken tenders an extra crunch. However, they seriously lack in flavor, even though dipping sauce is provided. You can choose from three dipping sauces. There was a mango, an apple, and I forgot the third. We chose the mango one.
Kyochon also offers some healthier options like grilled wings, but we didn’t try any.
After we had our fill of wings, we decided to take some home to go for our bbq the next day.
One of the things I really liked about this location was that the staff was super friendly. When we placed our order, the lady pointed out that if we did the catering order instead (starting at 50 pieces), it was actually cheaper than us placing our individual order for 40 pieces. The other thing I liked was that this mall court option was a lot less crowded compared to when we dined at the one in Korea town.
One of our fears was that the wings would not hold up as well for the bbq. Indeed, the next day the wings were no longer crispy. But after putting them in the toaster oven, they got crispy again, though of course they weren’t as good as fresh fried wings. They were still better than any other wing offerings though.
Kyochon
123 Los Cerritos Mall
Cerritos, CA 90703
Wow, look at those fried chicken wings! Not sure if they have this throughout US – ifbthey do, I would like to try it nextbtime I get there…
They have a few locations, you can look at their website to see if there is one near you or where you will be visiting.
All about the soy garlic!!! Nom nom….
I wasn’t too impressed with the tenders either.
I could eat these everyday!
I had someone ask me if I knew a place for Korean fried chicken before, but I didn’t know what it was. They totally sound like something I would enjoy. I don’t get up to LA too often though so I hope they open in SD soon!
There is one place in SD, called BBQ chicken. Which doesn’t look or sound like a Korean fried chicken joint. But I’ve heard the service is horribly slow and the food is bad, so I haven’t been. Also they serve a different style wing from Kyochon.
Wow – those wings look really good. Wings are seriously the best part of a chicken.
Are the wings marinated prior to the frying? Do they douse the wings in the soy garlic after the fry?
I wonder why they don’t open a franchise here in SD.
I’ve tried deep frying wings before and it’s just a big ol’ mess and headache! It’s hard to believe Kyochon charge $1/piece! But I read in the news awhile back that wings are expensive b/c they are in SUCH high demand now (isn’t that funny!).
nice post !
They are slightly less than $1 a piece if that makes it any better. It’s $8.99 for 10 for the signature wings. I believe that the wings are fried once, then slathered with marinade, and then fried again. They might be pre-marinated before the first fry, I’m not quite sure. They do plan on expanding to SD market, but I don’t know when. Could be a while.